$100 in 1990 is worth $136 in 2001,
because prices increased 35.5% over that period, an average of
2.80% a year.
$100 in 1990 has
the same buying power as
$136
in 2001
Detailed inflation statistics
Cumulative price change
35.5%
Average inflation rate
2.80% per year
Converted amount ($100 base)
$136
Price difference ($100 base)
$35.50
CPI in 1990
130.7
CPI in 2001
177.1
Inflation in 1990
5.40%
Inflation in 2001
2.85%
$100 in 1990 → 2001
$136
$100 in 2001 → 1990
$73.80
What happened to prices between 1990 and 2001
Between 1990 and 2001, the Consumer Price Index went from 130.7 to 177.1.
Cumulatively, prices increased 35.5%, which works out to an average of
2.80% per year. Put differently, a dollar in 1990 bought what
$0.74 buys in 2001: the 1990 dollar
lost 26.2% of its purchasing power over
these 11 years.
In 1990, the median U.S. household earned about $29,900, gas averaged $1.15 a
gallon, and mailing a letter cost a quarter. Inflation ran hot at 5.4% for the
year, its highest rate since 1982, pushed up by an oil shock after Iraq’s
invasion of Kuwait, and the economy tipped into recession that summer. It was
the last gasp of elevated inflation before the long calm of the 1990s.
Every 1990 amount converts to 2001 at the same ratio, 1.36: $1,000 becomes
$1,355, and $10,000 becomes $13,550.
Amount in 1990
Value in 2001
$1.00
$1.36
$5.00
$6.78
$10.00
$13.55
$20.00
$27.10
$50.00
$67.75
$100
$136
$500
$678
$1,000
$1,355
$5,000
$6,775
$10,000
$13,550
$100,000
$135,501
$1,000,000
$1,355,011
Inflation by spending category, 1990–2001
Between 1990 and 2001, medical care rose the most, up 67.6%, while apparel rose the least, up 2.6%, against 35.5% for all items. The headline number is an average; here is what $100 of 1990
spending costs in 2001, by category:
Category
Avg. yearly inflation
$100 in 1990 →
All items (CPI-U)
2.80%
$136
Medical care
4.80%
$168
Core (all items less food & energy)
2.93%
$137
Housing
2.92%
$137
Food
2.47%
$131
Transportation
2.27%
$128
Energy
2.17%
$127
Apparel
0.23%
$103
Not shown because the BLS began these indexes after 1990: recreation (1993–), education & communication (1993–).
Decade by decade: 1990 to 2001
Prices climbed fastest in the 2000s, averaging 2.85% a year, and slowest in the 1990s (2.80% a year). Each step below chains into the full 1990–2001 change:
Years
Avg. yearly inflation
Price change
$100 from 1990, at end
1990–2000
2.80%
31.8%
$132
2000–2001
2.85%
2.8%
$136
Year by year: CPI and the value of $100 from 1990
$100 from 1990 had already become $117 by
1995, on its way to $136 in 2001; each row shows the CPI, that
year's inflation rate, and the running value.
Within the span, inflation peaked at 4.2% in 1991, and the smallest rise was 1.6% in 1998.
In 2001, prices rose 2.8% and $100 from 1990 had the buying
power of $136; the year's average CPI of 177.1 is the level
behind every 2001 figure on this page.
Inflation fell to 2.8% in 2001 from 3.4% the year before, as a recession that began in March
cut demand and gasoline slid to an average of $1.46 a gallon. The median household earned about
$42,200, roughly flat from 2000, and a new home cost about $175,200. The Federal Reserve cut its
policy rate 11 times over the year, from 6.5% to 1.75%, the lowest since 1961. After the
September 11 attacks, U.S. stock markets closed for four trading days, and air travel dropped
sharply until the following year. Congress had already passed a $1.35 trillion tax cut in June,
which included rebate checks of up to $600. The National Bureau of Economic Research dates the
recession’s end at November, but unemployment kept rising into 2003. A first-class stamp went to
34 cents in January, and the federal minimum wage stayed at $5.15. The Fed’s cuts were the
first step in a long period of very cheap borrowing that would fuel the housing boom.
MLA: “Inflation from 1990 to 2001: $100 is worth $136 today.” InflationCalculator.com, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data, https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1990-to-2001/
APA: InflationCalculator.com. Inflation from 1990 to 2001. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U data. Retrieved from https://inflationcalculator.com/inflation/1990-to-2001/